10 Random Things About Deb

It’s been a little quiet here on the ToG Blog! That’s because it’s been a lot CRAZY at the Garibaldi House! We officially started Summer Vacation on Monday so the last couple of weeks have been every shade of BUSY! It feels wonderful to be slowing WAAAAY down. We will get back on track next week with a much-overdo Prayer & Praise Monday post.

So if you’ve got a prayer need or a praise you’d like to share, please send it our way! Prayer requests received by noon on Friday (pst) will be included in the Prayer & Praise post the following Monday.

Hopefully you’ve enjoyed our posts of randomness the past two weeks! We’ve been giving our readers a better look into the lives of the Throne of Grace team. If you are just joining us, you can catch up on the random confessions of Molly HERE, and Tami’s random revelations HERE. We have definitely loved hearing from YOU! Keep the comments and questions coming!! 🙂

Now, last, but not least…Here’s….DEB! Deb joined the Throne of Grace team in August of 2010. I credit Deb with being used by God to revolutionize Throne of Grace. She helped set us on a path that brought our creativity to a whole new level! It was kind of like Extreme Business Makeover. Among other things, Deb has taught Tami and I how to expand our horizons and embrace “off-center”. – M

Take it away, Deb…

1. Although we met in Ohio while attending college, my husband and I were both born in the state of South Carolina.

He was born there while his Dad was serving at the Air Force Base in Charleston. I was born there while my parents attended college in Greenville. It has made requesting extra birth certificates for adoption paperwork easier!

2. I got married when I was 20.

I was one of those girls who bragged, “I will not fall in love with the first guy I meet in college!” And guess what? I did! Ray was my small group leader. Our college put freshmen into small groups with an upperclassman to help get settled into campus life. I met him my second day of college, went on our first date a week later, and the rest is history! (By the way, Ray had bragged to his roommates that he would never date a freshman!)

Here’s a pic of the night we met:

3. I was captain of the cheerleading squad my senior year of high school.

I lost my voice before cheering for my first game as captain and was bummed that I could not fulfill my job to shout “Hit it!” to begin each cheer…totally lame! I actually really loved cheerleading, but never could do a back flip which I regret (again lame to regret such a thing, but I do!).

4. I grew up in Columbus Ohio…and I am a Michigan fan.

This puzzles many people, especially if you know how crazy Columbus is about their Buckeyes. It’s like I have committed treason! I didn’t care about football in high school so when my brother told me we should be Michigan fans, I believed him (he later went to OSU and converted…still praying for him! hehe). The funny thing is, when I met Ray he was a huge Michigan fan and would have never married an Ohio State Fan. Seriously. Not even joking. Wouldn’t have even had a first date.

Here I am at The Big House:

5. My son just lost his first tooth.

He was just 2 days away from finishing first grade. My mommy heart was worried that he would be in his teens before losing his front teeth…the things I (we?) worry about!

6. My favorite TV show of all time is Gilmore Girls.

Love Lorelai and Rory. I got to visit the set once and stood on Lorelai’s porch…happy moment.

7. I do not like camping.

Don’t try to persuade me to think otherwise. I know many of you feel that it is the best thing to do in life…and will spend hours telling me all the many benefits of camping. I have gone in all kinds of weather, I have gone in a tent, I have gone in a camper, I have gone to many different locations…I just don’t get it. If I have time off for vacation, I would like a working toilet…just sayin’.

8. I was terrified of the freeways in CA when I first moved here.

Okay, so 3 years later I am not totally comfortable driving on them, but have come a long way. First of all, in Ohio we call them highways…which means something different here in California. Secondly, most highways in Ohio only have 3 lanes in one direction…it might get up to 5 lanes going through a city, but not for long (you can drive through a city in about 10 minutes and then you are back in the middle of cornfields). When I get on the freeway here there can be 6 lanes plus an HOV lane…and it goes forever…you can drive for hours and be in traffic the entire time. And don’t even get me started on the motorcycles (they are allowed to drive between cars…I know my Ohio peeps are freaking out!)

9. I used to be a wedding planner.

I loved it! I got to help plan and decorate…I even did flowers. So many of my friends were on a tight budget, and I loved helping them create a beautiful event. During the ceremony, I used walkie-talkies and even had an ear piece so that I could keep track of the bridal party. The best part? Being in the back and getting to congratulate the couple first when they walked back up the aisle! I always would say, “Congratulations, Mrs. _____ ­­­­­­­“, and get to see the bride’s reaction at being called her new name…priceless!

Here are two couples that allowed me to be their wedding coordinator (did I mention I was their high school Sunday School teacher first?)

10. I worked at an eye doctor’s office for 7 years and I hate eye balls.

If you have something in your eye…sorry, you are on your own. I cannot look in it for you or help you see if you have an eye lash in it. Nope.

So there you have it…10 random things about me. Please tell me someone out there can relate to at least one of these :)!

Thank you ladies for letting us ToG followers get to know you! I am loving these updates! 🙂 I can relate with you Deb, because I also hate camping, would LOVE being a wedding planner and my husband is a MI fan! 🙂 Your son is absolutely adorable!! I’ve also been meaning to say thank you to Tami for the post she wrote about how God found her. That has been a huge encouragement to me! I think about it almost on a daily basis as I pray for my unbelieving friends. Thank you all for what you do!!

I missed reading about Tami somehow so I shall have to go back to that. I think it is so interesting to read about the everyday and unique things that make each one of us special. How boring it would be if we had no special quirks or likes/dislikes. My husband and I both grew up in New Jersey… but I grew up on the shore (that Sandy tried to take away but we are slowly building back Praise God and thank all of you that helped through Bags of Blessing)… and my husband grew up in West New York which is north of the Raritan River. Down the shore, where “everything’s alright” as Bruce Springsteen says… Jersey girls like us do not like the “Bennies”. They are the people who invade the shore every summer from Bergen, Essex, Newark and New York… which is where we got the nickname/anacronym for Bennie’s. I never ever thought I would marry a Bennie. They were aliens who spoke differently and invaded our space every summer. Yes, they did help with the beach tourism but we always felt that we had that from all over and too many came and stayed !!! Horror of Horrors !!! They do not talk like us or dress like us… it is weird. Hard to explain to anyone who does not live here. But… I married a Bennie. And it is a daily challenge !!!

I hate camping too. I have tried a few “types” but I want a hot shower and a working bathroom that is not a hole in the ground with a seat over it and I do not want to have to worry about bears and raccoons and snakes and skunks and other critters getting into my stuff ! My idea of “camping” is a Hilton or a Sheraton or something like that.

I grew up in New Jersey, but I am a Boston Red Sox fan. Now that is a dangerous thing to be in what is primarily Yankee and Met country (more Yankee than Met unfortunately). I can tolerate the Mets (except during World Series time) but I hate the Yankees. My Bennie husband is, thank the Lord, a met fan. Like your husband with Michigan, I would not marry a Yankee fan. We have a fundamentally different view of life. But what is really weird is… my two sons are Phillies and (ugh!!!) Yankee fans. How I gave birth to a Yankee fan I do not know. The odds must be a million to one. The only thing that makes me happy about that is that I did not force my likes on my kids… so they independently came about their choices of teams. In football… we are even more diverse… as in basketball and hockey. I won’t go in to that but it is funny and makes for great times watching the games. Good thing I like sports with two boys !!!

I love reading about you all. This has been fun ! Our God is a God of great diversity and beauty and wonder and He has a great sense of humor !!!

Loved reading your random things! I’ve actually never been officially camping, but I’m not too keen to ever try… I’m right there with you in wanting a bathroom! I also don’t relish the idea of sleeping on the ground – or on an air mattress on the ground… I’m totally spoiled! lol! Also, I was a drama geek in high school, but I guess we can still be friends even though you were a cheerleader… 😉 lol!

I just found your blog while hopping around this morning. I am always seeking fellow Christians in the blog world. We have much in common! I also live in Ohio and we lived in Spartanburg, SC for five years while attending grad school. We are back in Ohio – but I am a die hard Buckeye:) I am a new blogger at charminglucy.com. Stop by for a visit! Be blessed! Susan

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